Is shilajit legal in the UK? The rules explained

Shilajit is on sale in the UK as a food supplement, and we found nothing in UK law or government guidance that bans it. But “not banned” isn’t quite the same as “clearly legal”. One question, whether shilajit is a novel food that needs authorisation, has never been formally answered for Great Britain, and the rules on what sellers can claim are more complicated than most people realise.

This page sets out only what we could confirm on legislation.gov.uk, food.gov.uk and GOV.UK in October 2026. It explains the rules that apply to businesses selling shilajit, which also tell you what to expect from a product you buy. It isn’t legal advice. Food law differs slightly across the four UK nations, and Northern Ireland follows some EU food rules under the Windsor Framework.

How is shilajit regulated in the UK?

As food, not medicine. Shilajit products are sold as food supplements, which UK law defines as foods meant to supplement the normal diet that are a concentrated source of a vitamin, mineral or “other substance with a nutritional or physiological effect”, sold in dose form such as capsules, tablets, powder sachets or drops (Food Supplements (England) Regulations 2003). The Food Standards Agency’s guidance says supplements are not medicinal products and are regulated under general food law.

That means a business selling shilajit must:

• register as a food business with its local authority;
• sell it prepacked and under the name “food supplement”;
• label it with the recommended daily portion, a warning not to exceed it, a statement that supplements shouldn’t replace a varied diet, a warning to keep it out of reach of young children, and the amount of the active substance per daily portion as a number;
• make sure it’s safe, because food must not be placed on the market if it is unsafe (Regulation 178/2002, Article 14).

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland each have their own Food Supplements Regulations 2003. A business that imports supplements into the UK is legally responsible for their composition, safety and labelling, according to the FSA.

Is shilajit a novel food?

It’s unclear. A novel food is one that wasn’t used for human consumption to a significant degree in the UK or EU before 15 May 1997 and falls into one of several categories, which include food “isolated from or produced from material of mineral origin” and food from plants (Regulation 2015/2283, Article 3). Only authorised novel foods may be sold in Great Britain (Article 6). It’s the business’s job to check whether its product is novel, and to consult the Food Standards Agency if unsure (Article 4).

Here is what we checked, and what we found:

The absence from the register doesn’t settle the matter. Something can be missing from the register either because it isn’t novel (it has a history of consumption before 1997, so needs no authorisation) or because it is novel and hasn’t been authorised. The FSA says it doesn’t respond to informal questions about novel status and only gives a legal view through a formal consultation, and no such decision on shilajit has been published. The FSA also says that EU decisions on novel status made before 1 January 2021 still apply in GB, which is why its guidance points businesses to the EU catalogue.

So the honest position is that shilajit’s novel food status in Great Britain has not been formally determined, and we couldn’t confirm it either way.

What health claims can shilajit sellers make?

Very few, and none that are authorised. A health claim is any claim that “states, suggests or implies” a link between a food or one of its ingredients and health (Regulation 1924/2006, Article 2). Health claims are banned unless they are authorised and on the list of permitted claims (Article 10). The Great Britain nutrition and health claims register, in its May 2026 version, contains no claims for shilajit.

There’s a complication. Great Britain still has a list of “on hold” health claims for botanical substances, proposed by applicants in 2008 for EU assessment and still under consideration. Government guidance says these may continue to be used while they are under consideration; its 2021 version said a call for evidence would inform a decision on them. The list includes nine claims proposed for “Asphaltum/Shilajit - purified”:

Being on this list is not an approval. The spreadsheet’s own notes say on hold claims must still meet the regulation’s general conditions and be scientifically substantiated, that the wording, ingredient and conditions of use must match the original claim, that many proposed wordings may not be acceptable under general labelling rules, and that some may count as medicinal claims, which foods can’t make. They also warn that some substances on the list may be unauthorised novel foods. These claims were proposed by applicants, not tested by regulators, and they say nothing about whether the evidence supports them; for that, see shilajit benefits.

Note that the list covers purified shilajit only. A claim about testosterone, energy or exercise performance isn’t among the nine.

Can shilajit be sold as a treatment for any condition?

No. Food information must not claim that any food prevents, treats or cures a human disease, or refer to such properties, and this applies to advertising and presentation as well as labels (Regulation 1169/2011, Article 7). The food supplements regulations don’t apply to medicinal products, and the notes to the on hold claims list direct businesses to the MHRA when it’s unclear whether a product is a food supplement or a medicine.

What contaminant limits apply to shilajit supplements?

The GB limits for food supplements, measured in the product as sold, are lead 3.0 mg/kg, cadmium 1.0 mg/kg and mercury 0.10 mg/kg (Regulation 1881/2006, Annex). There is no specific GB arsenic limit for supplements. Limits for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons apply to food supplements containing botanicals, but it isn’t clear whether shilajit counts as a botanical for that purpose. Our guide to reading a certificate of analysis shows how to check a product against these limits.

How do I report a shilajit product that breaks the rules?

In England and Wales, report misleading or missing label information, including health claims, to Trading Standards. In Scotland and Northern Ireland, contact your local food safety team. For suspected fraud, see fake shilajit, and for the full checklist, the buying guide.